Windscribe VPN Review

Windscribe is a great free Canadian VPN provider that even allows you to access Netflix with their free service. For the premium user, you will unlock unlimited bandwidth and be able to access their global servers.

Last Updated on December 25th, 2018

Windscribe is a relatively new VPN provider that was founded in April of 2015 in Ontario, Canada. They provide a free service that offers a massive 10GB bandwidth per month (or 2GB if you sign up without your email address). Therefore Windscribe could fast become one of our favorite FREE VPN providers out there – watch this space…

One thing I am always looking out for when reviewing a VPN provider is whether they accept cryptocurrencies. This is due to the fact that a lot of countries are not in alignment with people circumventing their censorship enforcement policies – so paying with a traceable currency is not a good option. Thankfully Windscribe does accept Bitcoin!

Windscribe has a very easy to use UX that is feature rich, yet not complex. They don’t have the largest network on the planet, with just 100 servers in over 55 countries, however, they are a fairly new player. I feel it would be a good idea to watch just how many servers they pile on over the coming months.

Compatible with Most Devices

These days it is super important to be able to offer a VPN that spans all clients. People often have 3-10 devices, from smartphones, smart TVs and Playstations, to pcs and tablets. Sadly Windscribe does not support Xbox or PS4, however, it does support the main clients – Windows, Mac, Android, iOS and Linux. One great thing is that Windscribe offers unlimited connections. So, you can connect as many devices to their VPN, which is a nice touch.

The setup process can be a bit tricky for those that are new to VPNs, so I don’t think that they are particularly aiming at the beginner VPN market. However, to download their apps on your devices you can simply go to the download section and their systems will automatically detect what OS you are using. Then install the appropriate extension. You can even choose to revert back to an older version of Windows or Mac OS if you have some older machines that you want to deploy a VPN on.

Undercover Tactics

Windscribe seems to be able to unlock content in most countries, even countries with a strict VPN ban. They use IKEv2 and OpenVPN protocols along with military-strength AES-256 encryption. They allow access to Netflix and offer a kill switch to make sure that there are no leaks when you log off.

When choosing your server with Windscribe you can use some great tactics. For example, you can route traffic from one network to another – to further enhance the anonymity of your online activities. What is really quite interesting is that you can also change your timezone so that it appears as though you are in a different location. I can imagine that this feature could be used in many different ways.

Furthermore, you can view and delete cookies set during your online session. There is even the possibility to rotate the IP/ server that you are appearing from to keep your location completely hidden from unwanted guests, further hiding your digital footprint.

Windscribe Customer Support

Customer support with Windscribe is very well served. They offer a comprehensive “Self Help” section on their website that has Guides, FAQs and a Knowledge Base. They also provide Setup Guides for their customer’s convenience. Another great addition to their self-help section is their subreddit that will answer many of the questions that you might have.

Alongside their “Self-help” section that you can search to find your answer whenever you want – Windscribe offers technical support via a ticket or online chat. If you are just looking to get started with Windscribe then they have a live chat feature in the bottom right-hand corner of their website.

Windscribe Speed & Performance

One thing I like about Windscribe is that they seem very transparent. On their site you can find a statement that goes something like:

Internet routing is imperfect by nature, as there are many factors that can dictate speeds, at various times of the day.

Then they go on to explain the various options you have to improve the speed of their VPN. These tips include connecting to a server that is close to you geographically, upgrading to their latest application (currently Windscribe v1.81), disabling anti-virus software or trying a different port or protocol.

Privacy & logging

Windscribe’s deploys a lot of different privacy and security protocols to offer a stable and secure online experience. They use military-grade AES-256 encryption, which is the best around and quickly becoming the norm for high-quality VPN providers.

Additionally, they use SHA512 authentication, a temporary, one time only 4096-bit RSA key. Furthermore, there is a kill switch feature enhances security even more. To limit leaks Windscibe limits IPv6 traffic. You can also use a firewall just in case you lose internet connection.

The logging policy is not the tightest that we have come across. However, like I said they are very transparent, so it is great that they clearly outline what they do and don’t log in their Privacy Policy. They do use timestamps throughout their systems, collect some connection information and additional data that I would not be happy with if I was looking to be 100% secure when you are online. However, for the majority of people who just want to avoid hackers, their service is pretty tight. They don’t log things like online activity or IP address’ either, so that is pretty awesome.

Like I have said several times in this article Windscribe is a very transparent VPN provider, they even offer a “Transparency Report” to show any law enforcement requests. This is great because, one thing I would be hesitant about when choosing a VPN is their location. If they are in the 14 eyes surveillance network then that is not the ideal VPN location. Canadians are clearly obliged to share all data with law enforcement agencies. However, Windscribe has never been requested to do so, which is reassuring.

2GB – 10GB Bandwidth Completely Free

Windscribe offer one of the best deals out there when it comes to free VPNs.They provide a monthly service that gives users up to 10GB for free. This should be more than enough for moderate internet users. The 2GB is offered for those who do not want to give their email address, and Windscribe rewards their users with an additional 8GB if they opt to provide their email address.

Windscribe – Performance

The performance of each server can vary considerably depending on location. For this reason, Windscribe suggests that you connect to the closest available server. However, there should be no real problems with latency on any of their servers as many of them are suitable for Netflix. For larger downloads, it is advisable to upgrade to one of their paid solutions.

Unfortunately, you cannot access BBC iPlayer with Windscribe at this time. BBC iPlayer is getting wise to UK VPNs and is blocking most VPNs automatically. You can, however, view Youtube in the US to unblock content, which is awesome.

WINDFLIX US

Windscribe is a VPN that offers a dedicated server for people to view Netflix in the US. They ensure that this server works with Netflix, which gives Windscribe an advantage over competitors who have their customers manually check US servers to see if they work with Netflix.

Whatsmore, you can view Youtube and Netflix via their free plans, which is a great benefit of using Windscribe as your VPN provider.

Torrenting and P2P

Windcribe support torrenting and P2P on some of their servers. You can find out which servers support P2P or torrenting by going to their status page. When using a VPN via one of the Windscribe apps you can see which servers support torrenting by checking the list.

Windscribe Pricing & Plans

Windscribe offers a great free VPN service that is one of the best around. Their premium plans are not too badly priced either. The monthly choice is about the same as most of the top tier VPNs and their annual subscription actually works out quite a bit more than a lot of others (perhaps because a lot of the top VPN providers are offering massive discounts at the moment). All in all – Windscribe is competitively priced.

Yearly Plan – $4.08 pm

Monthly $9.00 pm

Alternatively, you can – Build your own plan

All in All

Windscribe is a great free VPN that even allows you to access Netflix with their free services. For the premium user, you will unlock unlimited bandwidth and be able to access their global servers. The transparency of this provider is commendable and would be a sure-fire reason to select them – because you know exactly what you are getting. With their try before you buy model, there is nothing to lose and everything to gain when selecting Windscribe.